Fair Fighting for Couples and How/Where to Learn?

My 30th wedding anniversary is coming up. We know too many people who didn't last that long (including our parents on both sides of our family and the couple who introduced us). But, the ones who have lasted seem to share some common values, ideas, tactics - whatever you want to call them.

Never go to bed angry is our main rule. Now, sometimes that may mean never go to bed in the same room, LOL! But, whatever works, and something certainly has over all our years together (two very stubborn, hot-headed, temperamental and high strung Type A+ personalities with diametrically opposed habits, yikes!).

HI Veronica:

First don't get too discouraged, fighting is part of any successful marriage. I have been married for 18 years and over that time we have had our ups and downs. We have even sought out the help of a marriage counselor. I have ready many book on the subject of getting along with your spouse and one of the best all time books which helped us the most was Men are from Mars and Women are from Venus. I have read a few of these books as there is a whole series. Another amazing book which I really enjoyed was Mama Gena's School of Womanly Arts. This book teaches you how to appreciate your husband for his good traits but also shows you how to make him want to please you as well. I highly recommend you check these two books out. Hope this helps.

My husband and I experienced something similar right after we got married. We lived together for several years, but right after we tied the knot, even the tiniest things he did got on my nerves and vice versa. It was just a change in our relationship and circumstances and I think we were both adjusting to how to deal with it.

Believe it or not, we do have a couple of rules for fighting ... Don't know if they're aligned with the more official rules of fair fighting created by psychologists and other bright people, but they work for us. Here's the rundown ...

We have a 5-foot rule. If the other person isn't within five feet to hear us, we don't raise our voices to accomodate the distance. This keeps us from yelling. (We have been known to follow one another around the house on this one though)

We rarely swear (but definitely do).

We try to take responsibility for and express our emotions rather than making judgments about the other person's behavior (A difficult scenario) For example, he might say "I feel angry when you don't put the dishes in the dishwasher," rather than "You're a slob."

We try to find the humor in the whole situation. Think most people are inclined to this approach.

We try to get away. No, it doesn't seem smart to see a movie when you're arguing, but sometimes, a mindless blockbuster is all you need to escape the world for a while. And, when you compare your problems to some other guy's crushing responsibility of saving the world, the fact that you forgot to put the coffee cup in the dishwasher doesn't seem like that big of a deal.

Let us know which rules work best for you or if you discover other rules along the way.